Book Description
The verdant pastures of a farm in Illinois have the placid charm of a landscape painting. But the horses that graze there have become the obsession of a woman who sees them as the fulfillment of every wish: to win, to be honored, to be the best. Her ambition is the galvanizing force in Jane Smiley's first novel, a force that will drive a wedge between her and her family, and bring them all to tragedy.
Written with the grace and quiet beauty of her Pulitzer-Prize-winning novel, A Thousand Acres, Barn Blind is a spellbinding story on the classic American themes of work, love, and duty, and the excesses we commit to achieve success.
"Chilling . . . Jane Smiley handles with skill and understanding the mercurial molasses of adolescence, and the inchoate, cumbersome love that family members feel for one another."
-- The New York Times
Customer Reviews:
barn blind.......2005-11-09
Kate Karlson is the indomitable, stubborn horse trainer who devotes her life to her calling. Her husband, who is more laid-back, and her four children recognize that there is life beyond horses and the farm, but not Kate. The oldest, Margaret, yearns after an unattainable man. Peter, the next oldest, ever the dutiful son, concentrates on horses, but is still dreamy, with his thoughts straying elsewhere. John, the third in line, is perpetually dissatisfied with life on the farm, frequently comparing their family to others. The youngest, Henry, gives up horses altogether and seeks his own path. Smiley's first novel is rich with details of the equestrians, their mounts, and everyday life on the farm. Kate is a complex character, if not always likeable: she drives her students, but not at the expense of their mounts. The characters are anything but the two-dimensional clichés found in many horse books making it a worthwhile read.
Disappointing.......2005-04-20
I expected to love this book, but I was disappointed. Although the setting is a horse farm, the horses are basically props moved about in the process of exploring family dynamics. The primary theme is one many people can relate to: a parent trying to live vicariously through her children, without regard to their own desires. However, I was unable to fully "connect" with any of the characters emotionally; perhaps because author Smiley relates their story in a rather detached manner herself. Even so, I might have liked this book more if the ending had not been so abrupt. Just as I was starting to really care about the characters, the climactic event occurs--and the ending comes so soon afterward that the story seems unfinished. Perhaps my expectations were unrealistically high due to having read "Horse Heaven", a more recent work, first. Everything I expected from "Barn Blind" is delivered masterfully in "Horse Heaven". For all but the most avid Jane Smiley fans, I would recommend either reading "Barn Blind" first, or skipping it altogether and reading "Horse Heaven" instead.
Momentum Only Takes You So Far.......2005-03-31
Peter, John, Henry, and Margaret Karlson were the children of a father who drove an old Pontiac and a mother who drove a Datsun. Peter's height came from his mother, Katherine Karlson. Axel and Kate Karlson had a horse farm. The farm seemed to take all of Axel's salary and investment earnings and Kate's annual income.
Kate was concerned that her best rider, her son Peter, and her best horse, MacDougal, did not get along. Axel feared for his quiet farm-bound children. While most family members were at the Barrington Horse Show, Axel cleared out the refrigerator and determined their establishment was a monument to waste.
The novel details Peter's riding feats and victories and John's temper and involvement in a tragic accident. On another level the monomania of Kate to develop horses and riders even to the point of sacrificing her own family is portrayed interestingly and convincingly.
don't wast your time.......2002-05-24
im sorry jane-but this book was so boring. you develop the characters for the first 6 chapters and nothing really happens in those chapters. I mean john screws up, margaret crys, henry spys on John, kate and axel fight and thats about it. the last chapter is alright but there's no point to the book. All it does is just explain this family's daily life and it talks way too much about horses. So, unless you have a couple hours to spare (even though i just summarized the book) and your sanity, buy a different book.
More than a horse story.......2000-03-22
This book literally haunted me. I found myself constantly thinking about the characters days after I finished it. It is a quiet kind of story, packed with repressed emotions, and somehow the ending felt cathartic although not immediately so. I could see chaos in this large rambling horse farm family and I could put together the events with a clarity I did not feel the moment I finished the book. It took awhile, and slowly these people took more shape and I began to understand more and feel the story's latent ending. I was intrigued by the family dynamics, the dominant mother/trainer, the passive, ever-loving, forgiving father, and each child responding in the only way their personalities would allow to the intensity of their demanding mother. The end was powerful. I reflected on the father holding his head in his hands as he realized there was no end in sight to his wife's sovereignity and determination to carry on at any cost. I crave a sequel, yet I already know it. It is the epitome of barn blind.
Book Description
Imagine you're a young boy—maybe as young as three or four—separated from your family by civil war, traversing deserts and mountains with little food or water, no medical care, and no protection from wild animals. Imagine watching hundreds of boys perish around you from hunger, disease, or attacks by enemy soldiers and wild animals. To most of us, it is unimaginable, but this was reality for "The Lost Boys of Sudan," thousands of young boys who were separated from their families and forced to walk approximately 1,000 miles to reach safe refuge from war and certain death.
For the first time, this award winning book offers readers a chronological timeline of the epic journey taken by these children, beginning in their rural villages of Southern Sudan and ending with their arrival as young men to the United States. Narrated through the voice of Joan Hecht, one of their American mentors, whom they lovingly call "mom" or "Mama Joan;" "The Journey of the Lost Boys" is a compelling story of courage, faith and the sheer determination to survive by a group of young orphaned boys. Because of Joan Hecht's personal relationship with them, she is able to portray their story in a way that most famous reporters and authors cannot. In addition to her extensive research of the political and historical events surrounding the long lasting civil war in Sudan, are the heart-rending personal stories and original drawings of the boys themselves. A must read for anyone interested in the the true story of the Lost Boys of Sudan!
Customer Reviews:
The tragedy of the children of Sudan.......2007-03-31
I can only summarize my comment about this book in a few words. The author Joan Hecht did a wonderful task in narrating the frightening and heartbreaking experience of the thousands of lost boys of the Sudan,Africa's largest country. Their dangerous journey involving thousands of miles in a very hostile landscape is incredible. The author's very kind heart,sincere consideration and admiration for these children is worth more than all the gold of the world. Very highly recommended for young and old.
Learning about Sudan? START HERE.......2006-10-15
This is the book you need to read if you are unfamiliar with the background of the issues in Sudan, the Lost Boys, and the issues faced by refugees who come to America. Ms. Hecht might not be an " academic", but she is the person with an enormous amount of first hand information on these subjects, and she breaks it down into managable pieces. Even if you are knowledgable on these subjects, this book is still useful as a clarifying tool. Ms. Hecht is also very committed, and that comes through on every page.
OUTSTANDING BOOK .......2006-08-11
Readers of this book will be touched by the stories of these incredible young men, who, at an early age, were separated from their parents and families. The atrocities witnessed by the boys are unspeakable. The author has provided the readers with stories that make those who have lived a life without fear take a new appreciation for the freedoms we enjoy in the United States.
A good term paper.......2006-07-26
The endless conflict in Sudan is another calamity that the press should have been bombarding us with daily for years. A tragedy of such dimensions should torment our collective conscience. This is exactly why it deserves a better telling than Ms. Hecht is able to offer us. The writing is amateurish and the text cries out for the editing it appears not to have been subjected to. Easy streamlining and the correction of some grammatical errors would make the book more readable and more powerful. Ms. Hecht's devotion to the cause of the Lost Boys is clearly sincere and praiseworthy, however, and she does deserve thanks for contributing to making us aware of the atrocities that go on in the world while we turn the other way.
An accurate, heartfelt and well-written account.......2006-06-28
Joan Hecht's "Journey" is in this reviewer's opinion the most interesting and accurate book available on the topic of the Lost Boys. As a former foster father to one of the lost boys and a fellow author and researcher, I recommend the book without hesitation. It presents an extraordinarily complicated situation in a manner that is comprehensible, fascinating and accurate. It gives the reader a true sense of the horror, courage and hope that has gripped a generation of young Sudanese men.
For its rare photos, clear and organized presentation and sincere prose, I highly recommend this informative and inspiring book and thank the author for her outstanding efforts.
Average customer rating:
- From Light to Dark
- Something for everyone, kind of an odd collection, Fire Watch best
- Dark science fiction short stories
- An Opulent Collection of the Wild and Weird
- A mixed bag of early stories - better work is available
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Fire Watch
Connie Willis
Manufacturer: Spectra
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
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Impossible Things
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Doomsday Book
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To Say Nothing of the Dog
ASIN: 0553260456
Release Date: 1998-04-01 |
Amazon.com
Fire Watch collects 12 stories from one of science fiction's most decorated authors. Although the stories are thematically unrelated, an undercurrent of mortality weights many of the tales with a powerful sense of humanity's frailties. Two of the best pieces are "A Letter from the Clearys" and "The Sidon in the Mirror," both of which show people reacting to death in characteristically odd (and disappointingly human) ways. Fans of Willis's time-travel books, The Doomsday Book and To Say Nothing of the Dog, will be delighted to find that the title story tells of another hapless Oxford history student sent back to World War II Britain to learn a hard lesson. Just when the book threatens to leave you morose and depressed, Willis reveals her wonderfully absurdist side in "Mail Order Clone" and "Blued Moon." Willis is a master of the novel, but her short stories are superb reading as well. This is a nice collection for a fan's library and a great introduction for those unfamiliar with her work. --Therese Littleton
Book Description
Winner of six Nebula and five Hugo awards, Connie Willis is one of the most acclaimed and imaginative authors of our time. Her startling and powerful works have redefined the boundaries of contemporary science fiction. Here in one volume are twelve of her greatest stories, including double award-winner "Fire Watch," set in the universe of Doomsday Book and To Say Nothing of the Dog, in which a time-traveling student learns one of history's hardest lessons. In "A Letter from the Clearys," a routine message from distant friends shatters the fragile world of a beleaguered family. In "The Sidon in the Mirror," a mutant with the unconscious urge to become other people finds himself becoming both killer and victim. Disturbing, revealing, and provocative, this remarkable collection of short fiction brings together some of the best work of an incomparable writer whose ability to amaze, confound, and enlighten never fails.
Customer Reviews:
From Light to Dark.......2005-08-08
I'm not a big short story fan, but I started on Fire Watch, the first story in the book, because I had just read Doomsday Book and To Say Nothing of the Dog and had heard this was in the same universe. I think the three most memorable ones aside from the title story, are Blued Moon, Service for the Dead and All My Daughters. The first is almost light and fun. The second is horror with a good twist and the third is far future boarding school. All three deal with relationships where at least one male character is a cad.
Her intoduction to Mail-Order Clone gave us the fascinating information that she used to write stories for True Confessions magazines.
Rather good collection to go with her longer works.
Something for everyone, kind of an odd collection, Fire Watch best.......2005-08-06
I bought this book mainly for the Title story "Firewatch", the first(?) of Ms. Wills' time-travel stories. Written in 1982, 10 years before "The Doomsday Book", it's a short story about a 21st century Oxford University history student sent back to London in 1940 to help fight Nazi firebombs at St. Paul's Cathedral. Mr. Bartholomew had been preparing to be sent back to the time of St. Paul when the History Department decides to send him back to the London Blitz instead. At story's end we find that the purpose of the trip was not a mistake, it was to teach students that there are some things you cannot change. I think this might be Ms. Willis 1st time travel story, it has many of the later elements of "Doomsday" and "To Say Nothing of the Dog", but is less polished than her later efforts.
The other 11 stories are a mix of things, ghost stories, post nuclear war, pre/post Rapture, SciFi- I found myself not caring for a lot of it, some could get offensive to some people (I think one had an F word or two in it too). All, including Firewatch, had an opening paragraph in which the author tells something about where she got her idea from- I did like that touch.
Dark science fiction short stories.......2005-06-20
A much darker set of short stories than "Impossible Things". Some of these stories are almost horror, and (almost) all of them are shot through with regret, grief, remorse, anger, or fear. Yet all in all, I enjoyed this collection much more than I did "Impossible Things." For one, it's more consistent in tone. Sure, that tone is dark as hell, but at least you're not being plunged into despair after just reading an absurdist comedy. The stories feel much less dated, and are more sci-fi oriented.
The title story is set in the same universe as Willis' popular "Doomsday Book", which I haven't read yet. It's a great advertisement for that book, raising questions about the nature of history that this history major couldn't resist. Others, like "Daisy, in the Sun" or "Father of the Bride", seem more sketches than fully fleshed-out stories, but at least they're interesting sketches. You just wish she had spent a little more time with them. "Sidon in the Mirror" and "All My Darling Daughters" are so dark they're practically horror stories, despite their sci-fi settings (a burned-out star mine and an L5 orbital college, respectively). These sent delicious chills down my back, and were my favorite out of the whole collection, sticking in my memory long after I was finished.
"Fire Watch" restored my faith in Willis, and made me once again eager to seek out more of her full-length novels. Readers turned off by "Impossible Things" should give this collection a shot, as it displays Willis' considerable talent much more favorably.
An Opulent Collection of the Wild and Weird.......2004-04-05
This is an excellent collection of stories by one of today's premier writers of speculative fiction (I use the term advisedly as some of these stories cross the border from science fiction to fantasy and most unusual horror).
The opening story, "Fire Watch", really belongs in the same universe as her Doomsday Book and To Say Nothing of the Dog, dealing with a time traveler in London during the Blitz. Very effective, with a well realized main character, it explores what the real purpose of life is under the pressure of either trying to change or preserve the past.
The best story here may be "All My Darling Daughters", which presents a boarding school of the future that will surprise and shock. Written in a futuristic teen slang that takes a little time to get used to (and is quite a departure from Willis' normal style), its investigation of sexual morals and abusive `fathers' provides much food for thought. The story is strongly anti-male without crossing the line into being a feminist tract, with a fair dollop of Willis' trademark satire. Disturbing and all too believable.
"Sidon in the Mirror" is an odd combination of science fiction and horror. From a starting point of call-girl house located on the surface of a star, it travels an unusual road through murder, love, and true desires for death as it follows a being who, by nature, ends up becoming a `copy' of someone in his close circle of acquaintances. Very different, but I did feel the ending was a little too pat.
"Samaritan" explores an area investigated by several others, such as Heinlein's "Jerry Was Man" and Orson Scott Card's Lovelock, about where the line should be drawn between animal and human. As usual, Connie brings her own viewpoint to this idea, and does so in quite an effective manner.
"Service for the Burial of the Dead" definitely crosses the line into fantasy/horror, but regardless of the genre, Willis knows how to write a tale that will engross and force the reader's participation - in this case, in a most spine-tingling manner.
"Mail Order Clone" deals with a man who orders a clone of himself from a magazine ad, and has a definite funny side as it explores gullibility, bureaucracies, and domestic relations.
"Daisy in the Sun" will take a bit of effort to follow, as for much of the early part of the story things do not seem to be very logical - in fact much of it feels very dreamlike, with a dream's lack of consistency. "A Letter from the Clearys", while well written, follows too closely to some by now clichéd ideas. "And Come from Miles Around" is too slight an idea to be really effective, but makes for a decent quiet read.
"Blued Moon" is, for my money, the weakest story in the book, dealing with happenstances of coincidence gone wild, under the influence of an artificial blue moon. Here I'm afraid Willis tried too hard for the slapstick and the crazy within her satirical outline, but this was the only story in the book that I thought really failed.
Overall, Willis demonstrates, in story after story, a great understanding of human nature, from its best attributes to its embarrassing foibles. She can be funny, poignant, ethereal, biting, demanding, and gritty, but she is always entertaining and worth reading.
--- Reviewed by Patrick Shepherd (hyperpat)
A mixed bag of early stories - better work is available.......2004-02-11
This is a collection of short stories by one of the most original thinkers in the entire science fiction genre. In the destined-to-be-a-classic "Fire Watch" a time-traveling history student gets too involved while studying the London Blitz. Other top-notch entries include the shocking "All My Darling Daughters" which describes an off-planet boarding school that teaches young men a unique lesson in relationships, "A Letter from the Clearys", a sad and moving tale of post-apocalyptic America, and "The Sidon in the Mirror" which tells the tragic story of a drifter who copies the personality traits of others. Each of these stories is powerful, pointed, and offers a unique vision of some aspect of life in the future.
A little less intense, but still of very good quality are "Lost and Found" which invokes the Second Coming, "Daisy in the Sun" showing how life goes on, even with extinction hanging over us, and "Samaritan" which describes a minister who must make a difficult decision about a church's trained orangutan. Each of these stories is sure to do more than merely please.
Rounding out the collection, Willis offers "Service for the Burial of the Dead", about guilt and loss and a lover who dies too soon, "The Father of the Bride", a silly addendum to a classic fairy tale, "And Come from Miles Around" wherein a mother observes the observers at an eclipse (but no one else does), "Mail-Order Clone", an inane tale of a customer who is dissatisfied with his mail-order purchase, and "Blued Moon" a truly unique story showing how a chemical company's discharge has bizarre effects on human behavior. Many of this last group are intended to be humorous, and perhaps shouldn't be classified as science fiction at all, but most are at least entertaining.
Fans of the author will be very pleased with this collection. Those new to Willis may find these stories impressive, but not overpowering enough to convince them to start on one of her brilliant (but admittedly lengthy) novels. This is unfortunate, since such masterpieces as To Say Nothing of the Dog and The Doomsday Book are among the best that contemporary fiction has to offer.
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Liam's Watch: A Strange Story of the Great Chicago Fire (Scrapbooks of America)
Pamela Dell
Manufacturer: Child's World
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Library Binding
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ASIN: 1591870143 |
Book Description
The historic 1871 fire in Chicago is the setting of this mysterious tale about family bonds, loss, and survival. Told through the eyes of young Liam, the story teaches readers about the tragedy of the fire as well as how families escaped and started their lives again.
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Peru Under Fire: Human Rights Since the Return to Democracy
Human Rights Watch
Manufacturer: Yale University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 0300052375 |
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Volcanoes: Earth's Inner Fire : A Carolrhoda Earth Watch Book (Earth Watch)
Sally M. Walker
Manufacturer: Carolrhoda Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
Nonfiction | Earth Sciences | Science, Nature & How It Works | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0876148127 |
Book Description
The Watch That Saved The Briar Woods Dam This story begins with Freddie finding a watch buried in the ground while he and his pet Tanga are digging for worms to take fishing. After fishing for a few hours they decide to play ball. While trying to free their ball from the branches of a tree in a wooded area, they over hear people from a faraway place planning to blow up the dam. The excitement grows as the countdown begins. Freddie, hiding in the woods, has no way to warn his mother of the danger. With less than a minute remaining, Freddie comes up with a plan. Will Freddie's plan work? Can Tanga carry out Freddie's orders? Is one minute remaining enough time to save the dam from being blown up? Be prepared for some non-stop reading and a surprise ending as you open the cover of the Adventures of Freddie, the Little Fire Dragon: The Watch That Saved The Briar Woods Dam.
Customer Reviews:
Very educational!.......2005-11-28
These are the books of the future. A nice easy ready for 1st grade and older. Each book is equally educational as the rest. Look for big things from George Skudera.
Product Description
Antiques & Collecting Magazine filled with information on items in title and much more. Very interesting magazine.
Average customer rating:
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Fire Watch
Lewis Costley
Manufacturer: PublishAmerica
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
General | Fantasy | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1424108306 |
Book Description
A rogue dragon fueled by hatred and vengeance re-enters a world that his race has not seen in more than a millennium. Upon his return, he discovers a small farming village lying peacefully on the outskirts of humanity. A carnal craving begins to burn from within his scaled heart as a strange thirst starts to take shape, a thirst that seemed all but forgotten....The Tribunal of Arcavious summons young Jarrod MeReel. Jarrod's ancient ancestor was the hero of the Great Dragon War and wielder of the mystical sword known as the Dragon Slayer, which has been lost for nearly a thousand years. But now with the recent destruction of Ardmor, the Tribunal wants the sword found. Jarrod suddenly finds himself in a race against time itself, for he must recover the ancient weapon and save Arcavious before all is consumed within a fire spawned from the very depths of hell itself.
Customer Reviews:
awsome book.......2006-01-29
best writen book ive read pure enjoyment kept me captivated through the end. If you aint got it,get it. Keep them coming mr. Lewis Costley
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Fire Watch : A Novel
Alan Dennis Burke
Manufacturer: Little Brown & Co (T)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0316116831 |
Customer Reviews:
great.......1999-05-04
I think this was a very good book. I loved it. I'm not very good with words thats why i love reading so much (I get to read the words of others) so I'm gonna' make this short and sweet, this is a great book and you should see if you can get your hands on a copy of it. I read it years ago and just ran into it on the internet and had to write a review. Great book!!!!!!!!!!!
Customer Reviews:
Lost Tales and Potboilers.......2004-12-18
Much as J. R. R. Tolkien and others, Edgar Rice Burroughs, popular purveyor of pulp fiction, had "lost" tales. I like to read ERB, but this is not the Mars books or even the best of the Tarzan books. This volume contains two unrelated stories, but are illustrative of second string ERB. "The Wizard of Venus" continues the saga of Wrong Way Carson, who set out for Mars and found Venus instead. I agree with ERB biographer Richard A. Lupoff, the story has merit as an easy introduction to the Venus series. If you dont't like it, you don't have to bother reading any of the other four volumes. "Pirate Blood" is a foray into 20th Century pirate-adventure land. Even for pulp fiction, this tale relies way too much on ERB's love of fantastic coincidence. Through several wild circumstantial developments, a California motorcycle cop, who is also a descendant of Jean Lafitte, joins modern pirates raiding in the Pacific. Both stories were found among ERB's writings after his death. They could be first drafts that await revision. ERB fans should be happy with the results. ;-)
The final Amtor adventure and an ERB morality play.......2003-10-06
"The Wizard of Venus" was written by Edgar Rice Burroughs in 1941 but was not published until 1964, having spent a couple of decades in a safe. This became the fifth and final story in the Carson of Venus series, although it is clearly intended to be the first in a series of connected novellas, which was what ERB did in "Escape on Venus." Carson Napier took off in a rocket ship from Earth intended to go to Mars, but he forgot to account for the gravitational affects of the Moon and ended up on Venus. There he became entangled with the beautiful Duare, who did not give him the time of day for the first three stories, which was a moot point because usually they were separated by circumstances. The standard Burroughs formula, where the hero's beloved is captured and he has to fight his way across an alien landscape to rescue her, was less evident in these final ERB novels, although it is difficult to say whether it was World War II or the author's declining health that took most of the wind out of his sails.
Once again using telepathy to pass his story on to ERB, Carson tells of an adventure with Duare and their friend Ero Shan. They first meet in Havatoo when Carson built his first anotar (the first airplane on Venus), and later when prisoners in Voo-ad. Now Carson is experimenting with a more advanced anotar and when the two friends take it out for a test flight, they have a few problems. Landing in a strange and beautiful land, they are accused of being wizards by the inhabitants of the local castle, who are worried about somebody called Morgas. Once he shows up, the fun begins in earnest. Again, these Venus books show more tongue in cheek humor than we usually find in Burroughs (Carson and Ero Shan take to calling each other Sir Galahad and Sir Gawain at one point), and overall represent the best work ERB did in his final years.
"Pirate Blood" was another ERB novella found in that same safe, although it was apparently written back in 1932. The hero is Johnny LaFitte, who is descended from the infamous Jean LaFitte. The story returns to one of ERB's favorite themes, heredity versus environment, and his belief that it you do not have the right environment a "bad seed" will indeed go bad. This is a very atypical Burroughs novel, filled with cold blooded murders, violent rapes, and suicide. There is even an illegitimate pregnancy between Johnny and his gal as ERB really lays on the morality play. Clearly the only reason that "Pirate Blood" was published with "The Wizard of Venus" was because they were found in that safe together. These stories have nothing in common and "Pirate Blood" really reads like a first draft that ERB just never went back and revised. The last Venus story is the attraction here, and the other a minor curiosity.
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- Falun Dafa for Christians
- The Reason Amazon Needs a "0" Star Option
- Falun Gong Is A Cult In My Opinion, Just Read This Book
- Very good. I recommend you try it out.
- Please read this review.
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Zhuan Falun: The Complete Teachings of Falun Gong
Li Hongzhi
Manufacturer: Fair Winds Press (MA)
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Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 1931412537 |
Book Description
Zhuan Falun is the core comprehensive book about Falun Gong--and a best-selling book in China before it was banned. It takes up where Falun Gong leaves off, exploring in detail many of the same subjects.
Drawing on an ancient secret oral tradition, Li Hongzhi explores in depth the core concepts of Falun Gong---truthfulness, compassion, and forbearance. Also included here are discussions of
- The origins of qigong and the long-forgotten meaning of "self-cultivation" - The roots of illness and the fundamental qigong method of healing. - Genuine integrated cultivation of mind and body - The relationship between Falun Gong, Buddhism, Taoism, and other self-cultivation methods.
Customer Reviews:
Falun Dafa for Christians.......2007-08-13
I have a 35 year history with Taoism and Charismatic /Fundamentalist Christianity, many books and classes to mention here.
Falun Dafa is an excellent adjunct to Christian teaching because it provides a Holy Spirit based cultivation method that can increase people's sensitivity, harmony, and receptivity. It can fortify the gifts of the spirit and lead into significant healing.
Most Christians do not realize that the Taoist concept of the "Tao" is nearly the same as the Holy Spirit. Taoists have been following the Holy Spirit, and nature, back to God, for centuries. That is why they know so much about energy, accupuncture meridians, and how to manifest the fruits of the Spirit, which they refer to as "Xinxing", or "fruit status".
The Bible says "by their fruits ye shall know them", so Christians have no excuse if they call Falun Dafa a cult. A cult is any group that delays your enlightenment.
Only the terms are different between these groups. For example: the same divine energy that westeners call "Grace", is called "Gong" in China. A "falun" over there is called a "tongue of fire" or "being filled with the spirit" over here. Sin in the west is called karma in the East. Cultivation over there is refered to as sanctification over here. Enlightenment over there is thought here as "putting off the old man and putting on the new man" So there is no big difference like fundamentalists think.
Jesus spent many nights in meditation while his disciples slept. Why did he need to do this? Today some Christains are following the disciples instead of the meditating Master. The disciples also tried to stop other teachers that they thought were competing with their master's teachings, but Jesus forbade them.
Christians need to investigate Falun Dafa, as well as other religions, and realize that the Holy Spirit dispenses gifts where and when it can throughout the body of Christ which is all created people.
Christians can test this premise for free by just practicing the positions off the Falun Dafa website just a few minutes per day.
The Reason Amazon Needs a "0" Star Option.......2007-08-12
I want to say that I absolutely stand against the atrocities committed against Falun Gong practitioners by the Chinese goverment. Stories of torture, live organ theft, or outright murder are appalling, heartbreaking, insane. It is time for the international community to let their outrage be heard. As someone who was in Beijing during the Tiananmen Massacre of spring 1989, I am all too aware of the capacity of this "People's" government to do violence against its own people.
That said, anyone who knows anything about Buddhism, qi gong, the true Tao, or possesses even the vaguest metaphysical intuition can spot this book as the worst form of mystic trash. Li Hongzhi is no more enlightened than Donald Duck. It seems that every twenty years or so another Worldsaving Guru Moron Sham-man pops up with claims to the secrets of the universe, which are usually the most laughable nonsense. One thinks of Bhagwan Rajneesh, L. Ron Hubbard, Carlos Castaneda, and Sai Baba. And now this dolt, claiming to teach "the true" and "the only real" Qi Gong. What a crock. That millions upon millions of people have bought this line all over the world really tells you how easily otherwise intelligent human beings can be made into total suckers. Sure I don't see Li Hongzhi riding around with a fleet of 99 Rolls Royces . . . but if you don't think that practitioners haven't suffered from these "teachings" all you have to do is read about what is happening in China right now.
The real Qi Gong exists, -- ditto for Buddhism, the Tao, and every other subject this book claims exclusive knowledge of. So why waste your time with a hype mysticism on the level of the National Enquirer? Don't let some bum guru tell you what's what. Y e c c c c c c c c c c c c.
Falun Gong Is A Cult In My Opinion, Just Read This Book.......2006-12-09
This book says it all. Frankly I'm suprised no one has mentioned these little inconvienent facts:
(BTW this book is free on the Internet)
* Look for the words "fox", "snake", you'll find ample references to fox sage and snake ghost, and spiritual posession.
* Page 18 - Master Li mentions FLG can cure illness, and obtain over
10,000 other superpowers, including levitation.
Need I say more? Don't fall for Falun Gong's cultish teaching, I beg you. Is "Jesus only saves white peopele" cultish teaching? You decide.
Very good. I recommend you try it out........2005-11-05
I have tried some mind and body exercises, and sometimes felt lost until I found this book.
I highly recommend you could sit down, calm down, and read the book with your heart. You will find it is a great book.
Please read this review........2005-08-01
Countless other commenters have described this book, Zhuan Falun, as the best book they've ever read; and I must agree with each of them.
For those who commented about how odd certain things in this book were, they must understand that throughout Asian history and culture the things described have been recorded and known of and not just within the teachings of Falun Gong; it is not as if Mr. Li invented anything he spoke of. Even if one does not believe in these teachings, it does not mean that they should slander or try to convince others that Falun Gong is a cult, a sect, etc. I myself am a practitioner. Before you think to yourself that I am writing this comment and defending Falun Gong simply because I am a practitioner, think about it: Why would I have become a practitioner and have practiced for over 7 years in the first place if I had felt that it were a bad practice? I am just like the rest of you; I was obviously not a practitioner FOREVER, as I became one when I felt the practice was genuinely good. I live in the United States where we have the fundamental freedom of belief; yet I have still faced persecution to a degree, directly from the Chinese Government.
A couple comments were written by people who used to practice Falun Gong and then gave it up, and there is a reason why there are only a couple. If you meet a GENUINE practitioner and ask them to describe their experiences to you, they will tell you from the bottom of their hearts the positive things they have learned and received from practicing. Those who gave up the practice gave up something extraordinarily profound; they may give you reasons such as "Falun Gong frowns upon the use of medicine"...but in actuality, if one were a true practitioner, they would not seek to cure any illness to begin with; anyways, if you wanted to take medicine, not a single practitioner would forbid you from doing so. Who can stop you from taking medicine anyways?
For the ones who felt Falun Gong was taking over their lives and were too afraid to tell their family members what they truly felt about the practice, is it Falun Gong's fault that they were too afraid to even speak up to their own families? I don't believe it is at all. Cultivation practice is for each individual, and nobody is even permitted to practice for the sake of others. There is no membership for Falun Gong whatsoever.
Furthermore, it is up to you to believe whether millions and millions of people with illnesses cured directly after practicing Falun Gong were simply "at the right place at the right time." A very simple example: I personally know a family who practices Falun Gong with 3 young children who are around the ages of 5 and 7. These children have practiced Falun Gong since they were very young, and they have never been sick in their entire lives and they do not even understand the concept of hospitals or doctors. Again, if you believe this is just some big coincidence and they are just insanely healthy children, that's your decision. No one is begging you to convert into a Falun Gong practitioner either, but I simply want to tell you the truth about it, that it is a cultivation practice that teaches truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance and that there is clear evidence available of the health benefits of practicing; which is what so many others are also attempting to tell you.
For the commenters who made a mockery of this book and said that if you do not read it demons will come after you etc., I think that is a pretty sad thing to have done and does not serve as a review of this book at all. If one were to quote something from the Bible such as if you sin you will burn in hell, doesn't that sound as far-fetched? First of all, nowhere in Zhuan Falun does it say something as outrageous as demons coming to kill you in a matter of days if you don't read this book. Do you really think that each of the 100 million practitioners worldwide are uneducated people without reason, and they have all suffered cultivation insanity? Even if you do not believe in the teachings of Falun Gong, you would not think something like burning in hell for sinning were quite as strange, would you? It is only a matter of culture and your preset notions that you would defend your negative stand on Falun Gong based on the teachings you find to be so strange.
Those who oppose Falun Gong for whatever reason and agree with the persecution have only succumbed to the lies and deceit of the Chinese Communist Party's propaganda. The CCP does not only persecute Falun Gong practitioners, but many other people who hold beliefs/religious ideas that is not Communism, as the CCP is atheist and fear for their power. Do they have legitimate reasons to kill people? Does ANYONE have a legitimate reason to murder another human being? Falun Gong does not even seek any political power whatsoever. When the CCP is atheist, they believe they will not face any consequences for their actions, and thus they do whatever they desire no matter how immoral it is. To slaughter thousands of innocent practitioners, illegally send thousands more to labor camps, torture even young children to death while leaving others orphans; there is no excuse that would give them the right to do this. No excuse at all in this world.
For the comments saying that purchasing this book will help make Mr. Li rich, let me tell you that those comments are simply nonsense. These books are already extremely cheap as profits are not made, since the price is practically the price it takes to print these books. If you do not believe this, please consider the fact that this very book is available for FREE download on the internet. No donations are even accepted. All Falun Gong fliers and events are paid for by money out of the pockets of volunteers. Not one practitioner is asked to pay for anything; each contributes on their own wills.
(...)
I wrote this comment simply to tell all of you the real truth about Falun Gong and the persecution going on right now in China. By reading this review, I hope you have learned something and have realized the facts straight from a practitioner rather than someone who does not know the true story of what is going on.
Thank you.
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